23 Year Old Man Sentenced to 6 years in Prison for Child Molest

Defendant Moises Flores, 23 years old, was sentenced today by the Honorable Shelly Averill to serve 6 years in state prison after pleading no contest to one charge of committing a lewd act on a child under 14 in violation of Penal Code section 288(a).  The court rejected a request by the defendant, and a recommendation by the probation department for a grant of probation.

District Attorney Jill Ravitch said “A prison sentence was appropriate given the defendant’s violation of a position of trust and minimization of the damage and terrible harm he has caused to this child and her family.   Hopefully this sentence will help the victim move forward in dealing with the trauma of the assault.”

The defendant was the boyfriend of the young victim’s older sister.  He lived in the home with the victim and her family, and was a trusted member of the household.  The defendant pursued the 12 year old victim by touching her, kissing her, and coming into her room at night.  As her father said at the sentencing hearing, the defendant made the victim feel unsafe in her own home.  The entire family was devastated when the crimes came to light.

At sentencing the court told the defendant that he had not convinced her that he was acknowledging the severity of what had happened, and its impact on the victim.  As a result, the court sentenced him to 6 years in prison, and ordered him to register as a sex offender pursuant to Penal Code section 290. 

The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Ashley W Hendon, assisted by District Attorney Victim Advocate Elizabeth Garcia. Detective Tim Raymond of Santa Rosa Police Department headed the investigation.